Ogr44 I hear you on the race front... I have not raced because I knew I wouldnt finish. and per docters orders.. bruised foot.. but I am working on my first Marathon I am 17 days out from doing my first marathon. ( or the shortest Ultra Marthon) I am running in the Williams Route 66 Marathon here in Tulsa. http://route66marathon.com/. with a trip to the center of the Universe makes it an ultra. very excited about it... my goal is to finish standing up... this is a good site I think a lot of people left because there was so much issues with it trying to log on and not getting email messages of course I am still not getting the emails to let me know somthing has been posted.

I am super-slow! I plod along like a Clydesdale horse. I am not a natural athlete but years ago (in my mid-20s) i started jogging and got up to rountine 4-6-8 miles generally but had a work location change and my time/place to run got all goofed up and I quit for years. In the past couple years I started c25k and got up to week 6 both times (love week 6) and then our weather got weird (boiling hot) and I just couldn't take it.

Started c25k again 3 weeks ago, just started week 4 last night (hard week!) and mannnnnnnnn was I slow but I did it

I am going to focus on doing what my body can do, push myself mentally (the program does that naturally, I think), keep moving, keep eating healthy and rejoice in the fact that I am trying and improving as a Penguin!

I have been off this community for quite a while. I had to quit running for a bit because of an ankle injury. I am trying to get back to it. Sure would help to have a running partner. Is there anyone here in the Shingle Springs/Placerville, CA area looking for a "running mate"? (pun intended)

I discovered I scream the same way whether I'm about to be devoured by a great white shark or if a piece of seaweed touches my foot.

definition of running: To move swiftly on foot so that both feet leave the ground during each stride.

i just completed my first 5k this morning. i did it. i was the very last runner to cross the line, but it's ok, i finished. i completed a C25K program last week and it was a fantastic experience. not sure if i'll do another 5k, but i'll try shorter distances until i build my endurance up a bit more. just wanted to encourage everyone to run your own race.

Congrats, Shelly, on your first 5K. My first 5K was September 19, 2010. I had said I'd never race, but my sister had lost her only child to osteosarcoma (a type of bone cancer that effects mostly children) and she was going to walk it. I had begun running back in March of 2010 and finished couch to 5K just before that 5K.

Since then I have gone on to run many more 5Ks, a few 5-milers, some 10Ks, two half marathons and, most recently, on October 21, 2012, a full marathon. I have done all of these at my penguin pace and been happy, happy, happy to be waddling along.

This penguin community is so awesome. I remember my flurry of posts in the early days. I've been away from the forum for awhile, but I just had to come back and see how everyone was doing and to provide some encouragement. Runners are (with a few exceptions) fabulous people and very supportive.

So keep going, Shelly and everyone else whether your goals are of the 5K type or if the marathon is in your future. You can do this!!!

I am most definitely a penguin! I never ran in my life unless being chased or if a small child was in danger. My high school gym teacher had told me there was no way to be as slow as I was. Not encouraging. Anyway, at 42 I decided why not do the "impossible" and run? I started C25K in August and did my first 5k on October 27, 2012. I came in at 38 minutes, which is faster than ever for me, and I did not walk. I intend to increase my pace over time if I can, but mostly I just want to keep on keeping on running.

@Wayna72: how did the marathon go? I hope well - I'm in the planning stages for picking my next 1/2 -- Maybe St. pats day in Virginia beach. Also depend on travel schedule and other such issues.

I've never worried about the E-mails -- I don't rely on them. I usually lurk once/twice a week -- when I remember and have something to post.

I have continued to heal -- pushing the pace when I can but still keeping it below running pace. I am trying to give it another month before really cutting loose. I have just in last month been able to put more pressure on the knee -- for example, getting into back stance in karate; cutting loose on kicks a little more, feeling strange that it doesn't hurt much the next day...

Doing local 5k tomorrow -- cannot pass up race that starts less than 1k from my front door. Wife is walking with me - this is second race for her after Chemo (she is 3 yrs post treatment for stage 3 ovarian cancer). shooting for post treatment PR, hard part for me is slowing down to stay with her -- I can walk fast especially in a race setting -- our local race will have around 1200 or so folks in the 5K and another 400-500 in 10k.

I've almost finished dead last - Last Male several times (both 5k and 10k) but never, dead last. I commend you for finishing -- its easy to be down -- but think how many people do you know that have never finished? As for the distance - I like the 5k -- even when I am slow, its never too long of a race. Look forward to hearing about your future experiences...

Stick with it. Running is a fun and wonderful post. It is truly one of the only sports and activities that you can count on continual progress no matter what your genetic makeup is. Just be smart and stick with professional level advice.

Blogging about motivation, injury prevention and training lessons I've learned at TeachtoRun.com and working on "The Ultimate 5k Plan" at HowtoRun5k.com.

I love this - I had never heard the term penguin before! I am definitely a slower runner than a lot of people I know, and after finishing C25k last year, I spent the fall season just enjoying the experience of running for thirty minutes straight without stopping, regardless of the pace.

Now I'm trying to train for a half marathon so I'm working some on speed just so I'm not out on the course forever... but I still think that the BEST reason to work on speed is so that you can then slow down and enjoy yourself and just be out running and loving the scenery and taking it easy.

My favorite miles are the ones where I settle in around an eleven minute pace and just look around and enjoy being outside.

Hi, I am a slow non runner. I call my running style jalking or jogging walk I try to work out regulary and try to run , a couple days of week. Which hasn't happened much this summer due to kids being home. I finished my first 5k this summer in 56 min. Most of which was jalking and walking. I think I would have finished faster if I just did a fast walk. LOL Yesterday I ran about a 1/2 mile with only a few walking and breaks to breathe. I found my slogging penguin pace, it didn't even hurt to breathe while i ran. I am looking forward to my next 5k in Sept. Eventually (couple of years down the road) I think it would be majorily cool to do a 1/2 marathon.

Hey I really enjoyed this post, and the responses. I am a big supporter of walkers, and it is REALLY becoming a fast growing population in the half marathon industry, so recently I've started to add a "W" to walker friendly half marathons at the half marathon site I manage called Halfmarathonsearch.com

I created an "official walker friendly minimum" of 4 hours to have a "W" next to the race, to be considered Walker Friendly.

It will take some time to implement on all states, but we have started to update it on some states and are now asking every half marathon that updates their dates with us if they meet that standard.

Over the last few years, I had gone through a couple injuries, and really came to have an even greater appreciation for the walking community. Not that I didn't prior, but when I started out as a walker post injury, I realized how many races were so un-supportive of the walkers way in the back, leaving aid stations before the walker participants reached them, no water left for them, removing patrol for the roads for those that were in the back of the pack, it was very disheartening to see and experience. So I'm now trying to create more "Walker Friendly" awareness to the half marathon race organizers' community, starting with our official 4 hour minimum.

We also have a growing number of members that are walkers joining our Fifty States Half Marathon Club that I manage, so I wanted to be able to contribute to the walking community, for so many reasons. With races becoming more supportive, it really helps promote the "fun" factor for walkers to get out and enjoy without feeling like they have to stress out to finish on time.

AnneofGreenGables I think you should totally consider a half marathon! I did couch to 5k last year and then did my first half this year. I love doing it despite not being as fast as any of my in-person running friends!